


Uncle Ian likes boys

by Blodeuwedd



Category: Shameless (US)
Genre: Fluff, GW2020, M/M, Meet-Cute
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:14:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25374505
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Blodeuwedd/pseuds/Blodeuwedd
Summary: Mickey helps Ian out when grocery shoppingMeet-cute AUWritten for GW2020 day 1 - meet-cute
Relationships: Ian Gallagher/Mickey Milkovich
Comments: 31
Kudos: 225
Collections: Gallavich Week 2020





	Uncle Ian likes boys

“Can I get a candy bar?”

Ian looked up from the groceries on his cart to his niece, who was sitting on the top of it.

“Erm…”

“Pleeeeeeeease?” She looked at him with big blue eyes. Ian sighed. Frannie was the sweetest kid and she rarely asked for anything, so he wished he could give her the candy, he really did, but...

He looked at the stuff on his cart again, trying for the tenth time to calculate the total amount with taxes. He’d never been very good at math. He’d bet Lip would know the total down to the last cent. Ian estimated it would come just short of the twenty dollars he had in his pocket, so unfortunately that was a no on the candybar. They were short on money this week, and Ian had really just come to get the essentials. 

“Sorry Frannie, not today.” She pouted and he felt his heart break. He wished he could give her a candy bar every day. He hated that yet another generation of Gallaghers would have to be counting every penny and would never be allowed any luxury. They barely had money for the milk and bread Ian was actually getting. He sighed. Maybe one day they’d make enough money that everyone would be getting a candy bar. As it was, it seemed like that day would never come. Whenever one of them was lucky enough to get a legit job that paid more than the bare minimum, someone else would run into trouble and all their savings would be gone. Again. 

“Maybe next time, ok?” He tried to comfort the little girl with a smile. She smiled back at him and nodded. She was still young enough to believe him.

“Next!” 

Ian moved forward, pulling out the food from the cart so that the cashier could scan it. He took Frannie out of the cart as well, setting her on the ground as he started putting the items in his backpack. Easiest way to carry everything.

“That’s twenty-three dollars and twelve cents.”

Ian paused in the middle of getting the money out of his pocket. Wait, how much?

“I’m sorry, how much?”

The cashier gave him a tired look.

“Twenty-three and twelve.”

He looked down at his single twenty-dollar bill. Shit. Why did he have to suck so much at math?

“Erm… hold on, just let me…” He set the bill down, digging his pockets for some change, even though he knew they were completely empty. Hope makes people irrational.

He frowned, looking at the food that was already half in his backpack. Maybe he could leave the... erm… Cereal? They could eat something else in the morning, like… just milk?

“Here.” A hand offered the cashier a five-dollar bill and Ian looked back to see the guy behind him in line smiling at him. He had very pale skin and contrasting very dark hair, which looked like it had been carefully styled to appear effortless, when in fact wasn’t. Ian was sure he was new in the neighborhood, because he for sure would remember seeing those bright blue eyes and plump lips before.

He stared at the guy, not knowing what to say. 

“Oh, I… I can’t…”

“Five dollars should do it, right?” The guy asked the cashier, nodding at the twenty dollars on her hand.

“That’s… I don’t think…”

“Oh, and here…” The guy picked the candy bar Frannie had asked for. “Run this too. You wanted this, didn’t you princess?” He smiled at Frannie and winked at her, then at Ian. “Don’t worry about it man, it’s only five dollars. I’m happy to help.” 

“I… Thank you. I don’t know what to say. That’s… very kind of you.”

The guy scoffed. “Seriously, it’s no trouble.” He picked the candy bar and gave it to Frannie while Ian put the rest of the food on his backpack and the cashier handed the guy the few coins of change.

“Again, thank you. You saved me big time today. Frannie, say thank you to the nice man.”

“Thank you, nice man” she repeated, smiling. The man grinned back at her and Ian literally swooned. Handsome, generous, and with a smile like that? Damn.

He put his backpack on his shoulders and took Frannie’s hand, leading her out of the store while she waved back at the stranger.

  
  
  
  


“You know that was a scam, right?” 

Mickey frowned at the cashier, who had one eyebrow raised at him.

“I beg your pardon?”

“A scam. Hot guy and cute girl? He planned that.”

Mickey blinked at her in astonishment. Surely she couldn’t be serious.

“A… scam? For five dollars? Lady, if that was a scam, it was the saddest one I’ve ever seen.” And he should know, he had run several scams back in the day. Not that he’d tell her that, of course.

She shrugged. “Whatever, your loss.”

Yes, his huge loss of five dollars. Was this woman for real?

He paid for his groceries and picked his bag, still in disbelief.

He stopped short as soon as he crossed the door though, for the hot redhead and the sweet child were right outside. The guy smiled and waved when he saw him and he smiled back. 

“I hope you don’t take this the wrong way, but I was waiting for you. I want to pay you back later, so I…”

Mickey shook his head, interrupting him. “Like I said, it’s just five dollars, don’t worry about it, man. Plus, it put a smile on your daughter’s face, so it was totally worth it.”

“Niece.”

“Sorry?”

“She’s my niece.”

“Oh.”

Oh. Wait…

  
  
  
  


“Uncle Ian likes boys!” Frannie yelled, and he immediately felt his cheeks go hot. Frannie had recently asked him why he didn’t have kids and he’d stupidly told her he needed to get a boyfriend first, which led to him explaining that he liked boys and not girls, so in her young mind she’d probably associated everything and said that as an explanation. It was his own fault, really. He winced.

The guy was pursing his lips, clearly holding back his laughter. Oh god, could the earth just swallow him whole?

“Well, I’m sure boys like your uncle Ian too” he said, smiling and raising his eyebrows, and Ian’s eyes widened. 

“Oh.”

Oh. Wait…

“Do you really want to pay me back?”

Ian nodded and the guy offered him his phone.

“Here, put your number in. Maybe you can buy me a coffee someday as payment.”

Ian smiled and did just that, letting his fingers brush the stranger’s when he gave the phone back.

“I don’t even know your name.”

“Mickey.”

“Nice to meet you, Mickey.”

“Nice to meet you Ian. I’ll be waiting for my coffee.”

Little did he know that only a couple of days later Ian would end up giving him much more than just a coffee.

  
  



End file.
